An Evaluation of Staff Training Needs Assessment in Ramat Polytechnic Maiduguri, Borno State, Nigeria

This study is on an evaluation of staff training needs assessment in Ramat polytechnic, Maiduguri, Borno State. Staff training and development means the provision of facilities and opportunities for people to perform the jobs for which they are employed and to develop their own personal potentials to meet their present and future needs in line with organizational objectives. Several studies have been conducted on training activities in Ramat Polytechnic, Maiduguri. These range from staff study leave arrangement, staff conference/workshop attendance to the Education Trust Fund staff development system. However, these studies are silent on training needs assessment. The general objective of the research was to evaluate staff training needs assessment in Ramat Polytechnic. The specific objectives were to identify the types of training needs of the Ramat Polytechnic staff, evaluate whether and how the training is assessed and to assess staff satisfaction with the training they have received. The study utilized both primary and secondary sources of data. The primary data were derived from the questionnaire and Indepth Interview, while the secondary data was obtained from review of relevant literatures such as documents from Ramat Polytechnic, Maiduguri. Four hundred questionnaires were administered to the study population; 250 questionnaires to academic and 150 questionnaires to non-academic staff. Stratified sampling technique was used in selecting the academic and non-academic staff. Of the 400 questionnaires administered, 361 were retrieved and used in the analysis. Indepth interview was also conducted on 8 key respondents of the target population.  The Chi – Square Test of Independence was used in testing the hypothesis. The major findings indicates that there is no training needs assessment in Ramat Polytechnic, Maiduguri and that training need is not prioritized among the staff. The result of the test of the hypothesis testing revealed that there is a significant relationship between training needs of staff and approval for training. It is recommended that the management of the institution should henceforth consider staff training based only on the needs of the department and the individual so as to bridge the gap between requirement and the current capacity of the incumbent

The factors influencing municipal solid waste generation in bauchi town, Nigeria

This study investigated the factors influencing municipal solid waste generation (MSWG) in Bauchi town, the administrative headquarters of Bauchi state, Nigeria. The study used quantitative method, while experiments and questionnaire surveys, were used as the major instruments for data collection. Data on solid waste generation and the socioeconomic attributes of residents from 400 households were collected from residential zones within Bauchi town, the study area. Descriptive statistics, Correlations and Standard Multiple Regressions (SMR) were computed for data analysis using SPSS 2.2 software. Twelve (12) socioeconomic factors were computed in SMR to determine the significant factors of MSWG in the study. The results showed that five factors, namely: household size, income, education, house head age and occupation have exerted significant influence on MSWG in the study area. The results also showed that F (5:362) = 84.058 at p ≤ 0.01 and adjusted R² = 0.531; which indicated that the factors in the SMR model have sufficiently explained the variance in MSWG in Bauchi town. The study concluded that the five significant predictor factors have adequately explained the variance of MSWG in the study area. Therefore, the factors have implications for planning of effective waste management system in Bauchi town, Nigeria

WOMEN AND SOLID WASTE SGREGATION IN BAUCHI NIGERIA

This research is motivated by the lack of adequate solid waste management system in Bauchi metropolis.  The research is carried out to identify the role of women with a view to integrating them into household solid waste management in order to achieve a healthy and clean living environment in Bauchi metropolis. Systematic random sampling technique was adopted for the selection of the samples and 4% of the study population was taken as the sample size. The major instruments used for data collection were questionnaire, interview and direct measurement of household solid waste at source and the data is presented in tables and charts. It is found that over 95% of sweeping, cooking and food preparation are exclusively reserved for women in the study area. The women dominate generation, storage and collection of household solid with 81%, 96% and 91% respectively within the study area and yet they not integrated in the management. It was revealed that education, income and quantity of waste generation correlate positively and segregation can be 95% effectively carried out by women that have free time It is recommended that segregation of household solid waste at source in the high density area should be adopted and women should be the key actors in the segregation, and there should be a law to enforce the mandatory segregation of solid wastes at source for all the households in the walled-city. This will not only improve the environmental quality but would also increase the income base of the family. Key words: Solid waste, Household, Women, Segregatio

An assessment of the effect of training and development on employee performance: A review perspective

Training is generally considered as tool which is used to enhance individual skills, knowledge and abilities of a resource, and to enable that person to understand certain aspects of business. Training and Resource Development, when combined together with other practices directly affect the quality of HR outcomes, which eventually results in firm’s higher performance. Need for a training program arises whenever there is a gap between the desired and actual performance of the employees. Usually the senior management of a company tries to fill this skill gap by opting for ‘On-job training’. Training is defined as ‘Planned intervention that is designed to enhance the determinants of individual job performance’ Training sessions help employees in reducing frustration and anxiety which is created by heavy workloads and also enables them to handle this effectively. Modern organizations have realized the importance of Human Resource Development (HRD), and have begun to use on-job training as a tool for increasing employee satisfaction. It is indeed the responsibility of the senior management of any organization to understand not only the apparent but also the ‘hidden’ needs of their employees. Generally are three types of trainings: On-Job training, Off-Job Training, and apprenticeship training. It is against this backdrop that this study intends to explore the essence of training and development on employee performance

Stream Ordering As a Tool For Effective River Basin Development: Examples From Komadugu –Yobe River Basin, Nigeria

This study assessed the existing structure/delineation of the areas of coverage of the River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs) in Nigeria using RBDAs sharing the largest inland drainage system, Komadugu – Yobe River System, covering Hadeja Jama’are River Basin Development Authority and Chad Basin Development Authority. The main aim is to identify structural defects if any, and show the resulting operational challenges that the defects posed to development of the Komadu – Yobe Basin area. Stream Ordering method was used as a theoretical framework to assess the delineation of the areas of jurisdiction of the RBDAs. Data was obtained from downloaded satellite images of the Basin Areas, using ArcGIS version 10.0 and Erdas Imagine 9.2 software, as well as information from topographic and hydrological maps of the study area. The analyses showed that the delineation of the RBDAs in Nigeria was neither based on the hydrological regions of the country nor on the basis of the principles of stream ordering for integrated development in River Basin Areas. Secondary data were also used to gather information on the impact of RBDAs operations on the River Basin Areas. The results further revealed many operational challenges such as poor coordination in water resource utilization, water loss, loss in production, loss of local dry season shadoof farming opportunities and worsening conditions of living of farmers at project sites and fishermen in downstream areas. It is established that application of stream ordering in a nested hierarchy of sizes as demonstrated on the Komadugu – Yobe river system covering the basin areas of rivers Hadeija, Chalawa and jama’are serves as guide for overcoming the structural/operational challenges and improve the RBDAs performance in realizing their set objectives. It is recommended that the existing 12 RBDAs structure be collapsed into the 8 Hydrological Zones in the country, and project implementation takes into account the principles of stream ordering for effective performance. Key Words: River Basin, River Basin Development, Stream Ordering, River Komadugu-Yobe Basin, operational challenges